Uncle Jon visits

We were thrilled to have Uncle Jon (Matt's brother) visit us for a few days right before Easter. We were also thrilled that he was offered the job he was interviewing for -- director of development at CLHS! Since he has a few other job offers for next year, we're praying for him and his wife that the Lord would make their decision very clear (though, of course, we not-so-secretly hope that they're headed to the Lone Star state!). :)

While Jon was here, we headed to the strawberry patch to pick some fresh berries. (This was especially fun to do with Jon since we remember going to the same berry patch with Chelsea around this time of year three years ago when she lived with us during student teaching.) Uncle Jon showed Ryan all about picking ripe strawberries. After Ryan realized that he'd get strawberry "juice" on his hands while picking, he realized he wasn't all that interested.

Ian, on the other hand, thought that it was VERY fun!

Uncle Jon and Ian found some of the reddest, ripest, juiciest berries in the patch!

Yum!

It was a beautiful day to enjoy the sunshine ...and we loved eating the strawberries we picked!

Matt's boss told us that we needed to take Jon somewhere nice to eat! Since PF Chang's has a great gluten-free menu, we thought it would be the perfect choice for Jon. The food tasted great,

and it was WONDERFUL to have an extra set of hands to keep the boys busy in the restaurant. Uncle Jon drew lots of pictures for Ian to color and read Ryan lots of books.

When Jon finished eating, he even took Ryan for a walk around the building so the rest of us could finish our meals. What an uncle!

After PF Chang's, Uncle Jon treated Ian to a game of bowling for an early birthday present. Ian had never been bowling before but he had mentioned to us multiple times that he really wanted to go.

Uncle Jon showed Ian proper bowling form, though it ended up that "Granny Style" was the most effective technique for Ian. :)

Ryan thought it looked like fun, too. A few times, he "bowled" his magnetic trains right into the lane.

Ian would get so excited when he knocked down pins. Sometimes, the bumpers really helped to propel the ball back into the center of the lane so he could get quite a few pins down.

The air to dry off our hands was another of Ian's favorite parts of bowling.

Uncle Jon decided to try Granny Style, too, since it was working so well for Ian!

Good game!

This was Ryan's face when we asked him to smile! What a little ham! :)

We had a great time with you, Uncle Jon! Next time, you'll have to bring Chelsea along. :) Thanks for the love and attention you showered on our boys. They love you to pieces!